Effects of leaf extracts of Acanthus montanus (Acanthaceae) on faecal egg output of Heligmosomoides bakeri (Nematoda, Heligmosomatidae) in mice

Effects of Acanthus montanus on faecal egg output in mice

Abstract

Abstract

Acanthus montanus Nees T. Anderson (Acanthaceae) is a well-established remedy in folk medicine, effectively treating various ailments, particularly gastrointestinal helminth infections. This study involved seventy (70) worm-free mice intentionally infected with the third larval stage (L₃) of the Heligmosomoides bakeri parasite. To assess the effectiveness of treatments, mice were divided into fourteen groups of five, fifteen days post-infection, after the crucial pre-patent period of 13.5 days. Each group received an oral treatment of crude ethanolic extract (CEE), aqueous extract (AQ), or n-butanol (BUT) from A. montanus leaves. The extracts were given at increasing doses of 1,200 mg/kg, 1,400 mg/kg, 1,700 mg/kg, and 2,000 mg/kg over five days for twelve groups, thereby allowing for a thorough evaluation of their therapeutic potential. Albendazole (ABZ) acted as the positive control, while distilled water (DW) acted as the negative control. Faecal pellets were collected and analysed to evaluate deparasitization rates based on faecal egg output. In all the groups of mice experimentally infected with H. bakeri and treated with A. montanus extracts, there was a dose-dependent reduction in the daily and mean faecal egg output. The BUT portion caused significant deparasitization at 1,400 mg/kg to 2,000 mg/kg compared to figures from distilled water-treated (DW) control and those from AQ or CEE portions. The deparasitization rates in BUT-treated mice ranged from 69.24±10.35% to 73.63±10.31%, showing no significant difference (p>0.05) compared to the 88.91±10.45% rate achieved with albendazole at 10 mg/kg. This study demonstrates that the n-butanol extract of A. montanus leaves significantly reduces faecal egg output of H. bakeri in mice, warranting further investigation into its potential applications for treating infections in livestock and humans.